You guys, Clara turns five in two weeks. FIVE! It was actually two years ago that I posted about her having issues with speech….which I’m so happy I documented, because she has come so far from those days. The conversations we have in the car about art projects, what clothing she likes, religion, boobs (one of her favorite topics) just make me laugh. She is a thinker and an observer. And she is a total goofball. We love Clara’s quirky personality.

And lately, she’s a scootering maniac.

Santa brought her this micro kick scooter last Christmas and she was skeptical; wasn’t into it at all (fail). Then one day we let her bring it into the house to cruise around, and she’s gone crazy on that thing! She is so fast and loves to ride circles around our kitchen island….which is all fun and games, till I’m making dinner…or when it’s 6:45am and my brain is not working yet. Ahhhh! That kid’s energy. Crazy Clara is what we like to call her.

Caroline is a fellow Art Gallery Fabrics designer and it’s been fun to get to know her better these past couple of years. She and I have a similar love for bright colors, and FUN.

She’s currently hosting a Blog Hop with other bloggers where we each get to share a project from her collection. There are so many fun florals in her mix. But I had to go with this knit. It’s always fun when a bundle like this shows up in the mail….along with scissors! Yay!

With floral prints, it’s a bit of a riddle to strategically get the flowers in the right position, so you don’t end up with flower boobs. (sorry/not sorry—used the word “boobs” twice in this post.) I think the floral placement worked out okay.

And here’s a large view for you. I love seeing the pattern repeat….which is a fun part about fabric designing. Do you make the flowers repeat in a grid pattern? A brick pattern? Random? There are so many fun options when designing in Illustrator.

Okay, so for this dress I sort of drafted a pattern. I took a dress from H+M that she grew out of a couple years ago and modified it a bit. And I tried two new things this time around. I love learning new tricks no matter how long I’ve been sewing!

• The skirt part is circle-ish, which creates less gathers at the waist but still gives you that fun twirl. • I gathered the skirt with elastic, and then sewed it to the bodice. LOVE THIS METHOD! Have to do a tutorial… • I sewed 1/4 inch bias tape around the neck, which worked. But it has room for improvement, so I’ll keep playing with that. • For the hem, I just left the edges raw!…mostly because I cut the fabric too short (heh heh). But that’s something I love about sewing with knits…no fraying edges! If you want to learn more about using knits, check out my post here and my video here.

Bottom line: she totally loves this dress. We took these photos right before school and she insisted on wearing it TO school because “it’s so soft inside.” She said that to me about three times. What does that say about all the other things she’s wearing?? Haah. Really though, if you’ve ever used Art Gallery knits you know how incredibly soft they are. Dreamy.

Thanks Caroline for the cute fabric! And for making our scooter girl happy. Check out the rest of the Blog Hop HERE—and make sure you enter Caroline’s giveaway so you can win fabric + scissors too!

Dana, Your so much fun to read and watch! Thank you! Can you tell me how you made bais tape from knites without it going crazzy and twisty on you, or does that make it all the more easier? Love love you site. Thank you, Lauri

I didn’t actually cut the fabric on the bias, since it’s so stretchy, so that helped if from twisting too much.. And I only made the bias tape single fold….it wasn’t worth pressing it in half again. But I need to play with this method more and share it on the blog!

Can’t decide which I love more: the dress or the fabric or the choices to make that dress in this fabric. Super super job! The speed at which our kiddies grow up, however, in my experience is always set to: TOO FAST. Thanks for sharing

Hi Dana ! This is an adorable pattern and fabric ! I sew with knits and have four granddaughters ages six and under and this would be something I’d love to sew for them. I have made my own patterns over the years but prefer to use a premade one so hope you make a pattern soon ! Love your patterns, your videos and posts… you’re the best

What a pretty, playful and comfy looking dress – lovely! I am curious about how you gathered the skirt fabric. I am a little scared of gathers especially with knits, so this may be a method that works for me.

Hi Dana! I can’t believe Clara is turning 5 soon. That means that I have been following your blog for about 5 years, since I first found it when I was 12! I just wanted to leave a quick comment and say that I’ve learned so much from your blog and videos and I am so grateful for it. Thank you! 🙂

I am going to try this! I am new to sewing and found your site whilst looking how to do a circle skirt for a costume for my daughter. I made a 4 panel one from an old duvet cover,( she is an orphan in Annie). Your video was easy to follow. I am now addicted! Keep the advice/ posts coming????.